We never know what life holds for us.
My dream was to dance; and I did. Time passed, life changed and though I can't be "out
there" on the stage, it doesn't mean I can't
dance. My shoes may be tattered,
the audience gone but the dance continues.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

What a compliment!

Friday night I went to my friend Monique's house to celebrate her father's 80th birthday. This is a family I love and hold dear to my heart. I know Monique because she is my Comadre Debbie's sister.

Debbie and I met in a high school drama class; I was a Senior and she a Sophmore. I liked Debbie immediately because she was so expressive and outgoing. In a drama class those qualities are a plus. Funny thing though, Debbie could be a total crack up one second and then totally shy the next; not unusual in actors. I think the thing that linked us in as friends was one day while doing an excercise we were asked by the teacher, Squire Fridell, to stand and make a facial expression that matched whatever mood he called out. In the middle of all the craziness Debbie looks at me and simply says "I stand on gum" meaning she had a piece of gum stuck to her shoe. That was it, we were besides ourselves, dying of laughter, outta control, gonna wet my panties laughing. We had great times in that class but my being a few years ahead of her in school I graduated and, as life would have it, moved on to other things. We lost touch.

Cut forward a few years and I'm out on my front lawn doing whatever it was I'd do out there. We had a huge Chinese Elm tree that had enough shade for the entire family to sit under. It covered the whole front yard. During the Summer I'd go out and water the lawn just to see my tree. And if that weren't reason enough to hang out, we lived on a main boulevard so there was always traffic going by. People would honk and I'd wave even if I didn't recognize them. I could make a whole day of watching the traffic while sitting under my tree reading.

So, I'm out front when who pulls up but Debbie. She saw me outside and stopped by to say hello. It was so good to see her. We chatted for a while, caught up and promised we'd get together. We didn't.

Maybe a year later, guess who drives by again....she stopped we chatted, caught up and promised we'd get together again. We didn't.

Can you say "Third times a charm"? Another day, another time I'm outside and guess who drives by? We chat, catch up on things and then promise to get together but this time, I ask "when?". My dad taught me that we can say just about anything to anyone, make any promise in the world but until someone takes the step to make it happen, it ain't gonna. So, question being asked, we actually made a plan. The rest is history. We started hanging out for what would turn out to be a very, very, very long time. We became family. I knew her's she knew mine.

This Friday night I took Karina with me to the party. The other kids are gone, JC is in Costa Rica so I sure wasn't gonna leave Karina home alone, besides, this is her Nina's daddy's birthday. We ended up gathering in the kitchen, as all good gatherings do, and go from one subject to the next. Inevitably we end up talking about our Salsa days, our fun times, dumb times, tipsy times, parties, well, you name it we talk about it. Meanwhile Karina sits in a chair listening quietly. I keep saying to her, don't worry honey, we'll go home soon, even though she doesn't complain, not once.

The last guests still at the house, we decide it's time to hit the trail. We get in the car and start the 10 minute drive home when Karina says "Mom, have I ever told you that I really like you guys?". I'm caught off guard and not sure what she's trying to tell me so she expounds, saying she had such a great time just sitting there listening to us talk about everything, not just the dancing part, everything. She says she wishes it was "still like that" and that she would have hung out with us if we were her age. She says people arent' the same as you guys were. You just had plain, clean fun.

My daughter compliments me on my looks, my choice of clothing, my shoes, my music and even my company but it was the way she said it that made me feel the warm and fuzzies. It's a cool feeling to know that your daughter likes you enough, she actually wants to hang out with you. I don't think a mother can ask for a better compliment than that. Thank you Karina. I like hanging out with you too.

6 comments:

Wow, Karina is stunning, and you look fabulous! How blessed you are to have a 15 year old that not only can articulate such sincerity, but that enjoys hanging out with you, indeed. She is so right and her perception of today's young people erases any risk of this sounding like a cliché, but simply put, "kids are different these days" for sure. Just in the seven years that I have been teaching, I have noticed a sad decline in childrens' creativity and respect for adults, and these are 9-10 year olds. The boys are more interested in the newest technological toy and the girls are growing up too fast. I really have to keep on my toes to reign them in, and funny enough, what pulls them in and keeps them "with me" is when they find out how much I really "love them." Your daughter obviously knows how much you love her, any you reap the benefits. God bless you all and it is so good to see your lovely faces!!! Much love, Anita - Oh, please say hello to Debbie!

marie, i'm so glad karina likes us! you know how when you'd listen to your mom tell her stories about the 'olden days' and how you wished you could have experienced that time? i'm so glad karina feels that way. we did have some really, really good times didn't we? lots of laughs, lots and lots of laughs with so many good friends. i think we were lucky. thank you for being my friend ALL THESE YEARS ... who woulda thought huh! XXXOOOYOUR COMADRE

It's the way she is being raised that she's who she is. Raquel says she likes my friends but she hates the way I dress...especially lately...lol When Meredith was a little girl she told me she was my friend, in return I told her I wasn't, that I was her mother and that she should treat me as such. She asked will you ever be my friend? When your 30 years old I told her. So when she did turn 30 she remembered and asked me if she could be my friend now? Needless to say I started to cry.

Oh ma chère cousine! Thank you, in your now very busy schedule, for coming to wish me well! WOW did I do a blunder, but no harm....I just have to go through another week of waiting! HOW IS THE NEW JOB? I am so happy that you are busy for this great reason!! I so appreciate your support. Lots of love to you, Anita